Oliver Bearman: Profile, Junior Career, Racing Style & more

2025 will mark Oliver Bearman's first full campaign in Formula 1 as he partners Esteban Ocon at Haas.

Bearman has already been exposed to the rigours of F1 having deputised in the absence of Carlos Sainz for Ferrari at the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and the British prospect enjoyed two more runouts on behalf of his future employers Haas in Azerbaijan and Brazil.

His string of impressive cameos ultimately led to Bearman earning the Haas seat on a full-time basis for 2025.

Born	8th May 2005
Current team	Haas
Previous team(s)	Ferrari
F1 debut	2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
F1 titles	-

Oliver Bearman's career so far

Biography

A product of the Ferrari Driver Academy, Bearman became the third youngest driver to start a Formula 1 race when representing the famed Italian constructor during the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and the Briton is set to tackle his first full campaign with Haas in 2025.

Journey to F1

After making his single-seater debut in the ADAC Formula 4 Championships and competing in the Italian F4 in 2020, Bearman made the switch to Van Amersfoort Racing for the 2021 campaign and impressively won both titles, winning a total of 17 races across both formats.

His consistency and speed certainly didn't go unnoticed and after being awarded the Henry Surtees Award for most outstanding performance by a BRDC rising star, Bearman was inducted into Ferrari's Driver Academy.

Moving into F3 with PREMA in 2022, the Italian team that housed Charles Leclerc in his F2 season, Bearman thought he'd secured victory on debut in Bahrain, only for a five-second penalty to demote him to second.

Results tailed off but Bearman recaptured his best form during the middle of the season, recording three consecutive third-place finishes before taking his first win in the sprint race at Spa-Francorchamps.

The Brit still had a slim shot of the title in the ultimate round of the season at Monza but was forced to settle for third in the standings, which was still enough to secure him a seat in F2 for the following year.

Remaining with PREMA where he would partner Mercedes junior driver Frederik Vesti, Bearman endured a difficult start to his F2 career, suffering mechanical performance issues and costly race incidents.

It wouldn't take long for him to find his feet and Bearman was on the top step of the podium in Baku, securing victories in both the Sprint and Feature Race. He would seal further wins in Barcelona and Monza, with the Chelmsford-born racer finishing 6th in the standings.

Starting the 2024 season with high expectations, Bearman could only finish as high as 15th in the opening feature race in Bahrain but bounced back in Jeddah, claiming pole position for the feature race.

24 hours later and he was sat in Sainz's Ferrari competing in a F1 qualifying session, setting the path to his permanent role on the grid in 2025.

F1 career to date

Ferrari

After Sainz was diagnosed with appendicitis prior to the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Bearman answered a last-minute call from Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur to deputise in the Spaniard's absence.

Bearman stepped up with immense maturity and skill to claim 11th on the grid in his first qualifying session, narrowly missing out on Q3 by 0.036 seconds to seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.

He impressed further during the race as he fended off the threat of Hamilton and Lando Norris behind to cross the line in seventh, earning six points on debut.

Vasseur described Bearman's performance as "faultless" and the Briton received praise from a number of drivers, along with Haas' team principal Ayao Komatsu.

Haas

Haas announced in July 2024 that Bearman had signed a multi-year contract with the American constructor for 2025 and beyond.

His debut for the team came sooner than he may have anticipated as he was called upon to race in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix due to Kevin Magnussen's race ban. Qualifying in 11th, ahead of teammate Nico Hulkenberg, Bearman scored points again by bringing his Haas home in 10th.

Bearman was drafted in again for the Brazilian Grand Prix as Magnussen withdrew due to illness and the Briton endured an incident-packed race before finishing in 12th.

Oliver Bearman's racing record

F3 record

	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	Podiums	Points	Position
2022	Prema Racing	18	1	0	8	132	3rd

F2 record

	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	Podiums	Points	Position
2023	Prema Racing	26	4	3	5	130	6th
2024	Prema Racing	24	3	0	3	75	12th

Oliver Bearman best races

Bearman's appearance in Saudi Arabia saw him become the youngest Ferrari driver in the team's illustrious history and the prodigious talent certainly didn't baulk under the spotlight.

Demonstrating excellent racecraft to overtake several competitors, Bearman's lap times were consistent throughout and in the wake of increasing pressure from behind, the teenager kept his cool to stave off Hamilton and Norris behind.

Oliver Bearman nationality

Where is Oliver Bearman from?

Bearman is a British racing driver who was born in Havering, London and grew up in Chelmsford, Essex.

At the age of 16, he relocated to Modena in Italy after joining Ferrari's Driver Academy.

Oliver Bearman net worth

Bearman's net worth is reportedly in excess of £1million.

His father, David, is the founder and CEO of the insurance firm Aventum Group.

Oliver Bearman's racing style

Unique in comparison to many other drivers on the grid, Bearman admitted he prefers a single clutch on his gearbox instead of the double clutch system and is a key component in his efficient driving style.

With an understeering set-up, Bearman prefers to take an early apex to shorten the distance of the corner, thus increasing rotation but being wary of lighting up the rear tyres when accelerating on exit.

Thoughts on Oliver Bearman's racing style

The fact he had a short weekend without FP1 and FP2, without any mistakes, honestly I was completely impressed by this in Jeddah. Between the walls, skipping FP1 and FP2, directly almost into qualifying.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur on Bearman's drive at the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix (via F1TV)

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